News Briefs
- 9/16/2026
Costco expands Uber Eats delivery to 600 stores across U.S.
Costco Wholesale Corp. is significantly extending the reach of its Uber Eats online delivery partnership.
The wholesale retail giant is now offering online delivery via Uber Eats in 47 states, up from 17. Nearly 600 Costco locations are now available on Uber Eats for on-demand and scheduled delivery through the Uber Eats app. The retailer initially partnered with Uber Eats in 2021.
[READ MORE: Costco pilots same-day grocery delivery with Uber]
“We are thrilled to expand our partnership with Costco nationwide, giving Costco members more ways to shop and bringing the brand’s storied selection and value to more consumers,” said Andrew Macdonald, president and COO at Uber.
As part of this upgraded U.S. partnership, Uber and Costco are offering additional benefits to Costco members, including 50% off an annual Uber One paid membership for the first year, for eligible members, followed by 20% off in subsequent years.
For a limited time, Uber/Uber Eats gift cards will be available at participating Costco locations and on the Costco e-commerce site at a price of $79.99 for $100 of value. In another limited time offer, consumers can purchase a Costco membership directly through Uber Eats and receive 30% off their first eligible Costco order.
Costco is also available on Uber Eats in Canada, Mexico, Japan, Taiwan, France and Spain. The retailer began collaborating with Instacart to offer same-day delivery from stores in the U.S. and Canada in 2020, expanding to Europe in 2026. Costco has also been providing curbside pickup at select stores in partnership with Instacart since 2021.
Costco currently operates 939 warehouses globally, including 647 in the U.S. and Puerto Rico. Uber Eats leverages Uber’s technology and logistics capabilities to partner with 825,000 retailers in more than 11,000 cities globally.
- 9/15/2026
Estee Lauder tracks AI recommendations
A global cosmetics conglomerate is analyzing how its brands are discussed on leading artificial intelligence platforms to improve promotional efforts.
The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. js partnering with AI marketing platform Profound to obtain unified visibility into how its full portfolio of brands is represented across leading generative AI platforms globally and gain insight into when and how they are recommended and where opportunities exist to improve visibility and accuracy.
The company will then use these insights and Profound’s agentic AI tools to optimize content across its brands’ product description pages, blogs, YouTube channels, and content creation at scale to help ensure product information, ingredients, claims and benefits are optimized for consumer visibility and easier for large language models to understand and surface to consumers.
[READ MORE: How AI makes individualized promotions – at scale – a reality]
“The way people discover beauty is being rewritten in real time, and we intend to shape that shift rather than reacting to it,” said Aude Gandon, global chief digital & marketing officer, The Estée Lauder Companies. “This partnership gives every brand in our portfolio the ability to show up distinctly, consistently, and accurately wherever our consumers are asking for recommendations.”
Other Estée Lauder AI activities include an AI Innovation Lab it co-created with Microsoft Corp. as an expansion of a global strategic relationship which began in 2017. Leveraging generative AI capabilities in Microsoft’s Azure OpenAI Service, the companies are working together to develop solutions for Estee Lauder’s beauty brands.
The Estee Lauder Companies Inc. sells products in approximately 150 countries and territories under brand names including: Estée Lauder, Aramis, Clinique, Lab Series, Origins, M·A·C, La Mer, Bobbi Brown Cosmetics, Aveda, Jo Malone London, Bumble and bumble, Darphin Paris, TOM FORD, Smashbox, AERIN Beauty, Le Labo, Editions de Parfums Frédéric Malle, GLAMGLOW, and KILIAN PARIS.
- 9/15/2026
Staples launches 'Hard vs. Easy' campaign to highlight workplace solutions
Staples Inc. is putting a new spin on the iconic "Easy Button" that has been a signature element in its marketing campaigns.
As it celebrate 40 years in business, the office supplies giant is launching a new brand platform, "Hard vs. Easy," that is designed to eliminate the “unnecessary friction businesses encounter,” including managing dozens of vendors and disconnected processes to last-minute supply runs, inconsistent quality and unreliable delivery. The platform pairs specific workplace pain points with tangible Staples solutions and proof points, using the Hard and Easy Buttons as an immediate visual shorthand for the choice.
“For 40 years, Staples has upheld a simple promise: Make work Easy and help people and businesses succeed,” said Rachel Huckle, CEO of Staples. “The world of work has changed dramatically, but our promise has not. What has grown is the breadth and scale of how we deliver it. This campaign brings that story to life in a way that is unmistakably Staples: Show the Hard, then present the Easy way forward.”
[READ MORE: Staples partners to open in-store eyewear shops in four locations]
For business owners, office managers, facilities leads, procurement teams and enterprise leaders, Staples said its delivers its "Easy: experience through three core pillars: workplace solutions, expert guidance and world-class reliability.
Headquartered near Boston, Staples serves customers throughout North America through direct B2B sales, e-commerce and more than 900 retail stores.
- 9/14/2026
Pacsun enters sleep and loungewear category aided by Gen Z feedback
A youth-oriented specialty fashion retailer is looking to its core customer base for inspiration as it enters a new product category.
Pacsun is introducing “PS Goodnight,” a new sleep and loungewear brand designed for Gen Z. The debut collection features 41 pieces, with apparel ranging from $25 to $55 and eye masks available for $20. The assortment spans pajama separates and coordinated sleep sets, including button-up sets in jersey knit, woven sets, and a satin set, alongside pointelle, lace and brushed flannel pieces and soft shorts.
According to Pacsun, the launch builds on insights from newly released “2026 Youth Report,” a survey of roughly 6,100 Gen Z and Gen Alpha respondents ages 11 to 24 across the U.S. In addition, the retailer gathered input throughout the development process from the Pacsun Community Hub, a platform integrating social connection, creator monetization, and co-creation opportunities, aiming to help “shape the next generation of youth culture and style alongside Pacsun.”
Pacsun also consulted its Pacsun Youth Advisory Council, a group of 14 people aged 12 through 26 who give their opinions on new product drops and collaborations, as well strategies for the retailer’s marketing approach and technology innovations.
[READ MORE: Pacsun connects with consumers for cultural relevance]
“As we explored what this brand could be, we looked beyond the data and stayed close to the young people we serve, using their perspectives to help us build something that feels relevant to their lives,” said Richard Cox, chief merchandising officer at Pacsun. “That combination of insight and ongoing dialogue is central to how we build at Pacsun."
PS Goodnight is now available at select Pacsun stores and online.
Founded in 1980 in Newport Beach, Calif., Pacsun is now co-headquartered in Los Angeles.
- 9/14/2026
Meta veteran joins Walmart Connect as head of U.S. sales
Walmart’s retail media network has added a new leader to its team.
Kate Hamill is joining Walmart Connect as senior VP and head of U.S. sales. She will lead the network’s U.S. commercial organization, with responsibility across sales, partnerships, sales operations and client services.
Hamill joins the retail giant from Pinterest, where she spent over a year as VP of North America enterprise sales. In the role, she led the company’s North America enterprise sales organization and, for a period, also oversaw its international enterprise sales organization.
Prior to Pinterest, Hamill spent 13 years at Meta (formerly Facebook Inc.) holding leadership roles across retail and e-commerce, emerging businesses, travel and more. She most recently served as managing director and head of industry, e-commerce at retail.
[READ MORE: Walmart extending Scintilla to Sam’s Club]
“Walmart Connect continues to grow and become an increasingly important part of Walmart’s broader business,” said Ryan Mayward, senior VP and general manager of Walmart Connect. “As we look ahead, our focus is on raising the bar for how we serve advertisers and drive lasting growth for their businesses. Kate’s deep advertising experience, customer focus, and proven ability to lead at scale will be incredibly valuable as we pursue that opportunity.”
Walmart Connect was launched in 2021 as a revamped version of the Walmart Media Group.
Based in Bentonville, Ark., Walmart Inc. operates more than 10,900 stores and numerous e-commerce websites in 19 countries.
- 9/14/2026
Survey: Majority of returned items lose value for European retailers
Returned merchandise is seldom re-sold at full price, presenting a challenge for retailers.
That’s according to a new survey of retailers in the United Kingdom and Europe from ReBound Returns and Advanced Supply Chain (ASC), which found that while 86% of retailers have an established approach to circularity in returns, only 9% of retailers resell more than half of their returned products at full price. On average, 12% of returned items generate no value.
A large majority (82%) of retailers believe that up to half of their returned stock could generate additional value through enhanced recommerce strategies, while nearly two-thirds (62%) said they already make regular efforts to recover value from goods that cannot be resold.
More than a quarter (27%) of those surveyed said that circularity is a “core part: of how returns are managed.
“Retailers have made clear progress in building circularity into their returns strategies, but the data shows that having a circular process in place does not necessarily mean retailers are maximizing the value of every returned product,” said Stuart Greenfield, U.K. and European sales director at ASC. “The opportunity now is to look at what comes back as inventory with potential value, and determine the best route for each item, whether that is resale, refurbishment, repair, donation or recycling.”
[READ MORE: Returns affect online purchase behavior – here’s how]
The Circularity Index is based on research conducted by Opinium on behalf of ReBound Returns and ASC. Opinium surveyed 150 senior leaders in mid-to-large retailers with annual revenues above £/€100 million between July 13-29.
The full report can be found here.
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